Because of a Simple Task
by marsheemallows
Summary: In which Mirajane assigned a task to Juvia and an unexpected turn of events took place. [gray/juvia]
**Hello! Another Gruvia one-shot. I still don't know if I'm gonna continue it based on the reviews!
I apologize in advance for any grammatical errors. Feel free to correct! :) I also would like to send my deepest gratitude to those who dropped wonderful reviews on my first fanfic. That was a great head-start for me, thanks a lot! Hope you'll like this one!  
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 **Juvia didn't really know where to start.**

The first time she heard the job from Mirajane, her eyes twinkled. Of course, it was a task involving **_Gray-sama_**! Guess one could say she was _all fired up_. Her heart thumped and she squealed excitedly.

The task was simple. She was commanded by Mirajane to give a certain letter to Gray — a letter whose content is utterly unknown to her. Of course, this triggered the curiosity dwelling inside the bluenette's mind. She bombarded Mirajane with queries and babbled on about how the letter is pretty much a "love letter". That smug smirk plastered across the Take Over Mage didn't really help...

"My, my, there's no need to worry now, Juvia," Mira laughed, "It's a letter from the Master, you dummy! I think it's about a specific job for Ice Wizards, and Gray is needed."

"But Juvia saw that smirk on your face! It must've meant something! Maybe you're playing an evil trick on Juvia!" the Water Mage exclaimed, fidgeting with her fingers.

"I won't do such thing, dear! Anyway, you should get going now~" The white-head said in a lovely tune.

Juvia's eyes narrowed. "You sure this isn't a love letter?"

Mira just shook her head. "There's nothing to be anxious about. I'm not your romantic rival." She gently pushed a resisting bluenette outside the guild. "Good luck with that!" The white-head calmly waved goodbye to her, but she's actually dancing inside— the ultimate shipper strikes again. She wondered how things will go off between those two.

Meanwhile, Juvia continued walking and is starting to get a little bit impatient.

She hummed whilst strolling across the skirts of Magnolia, eagerly seeking for Gray's house. She really thought it was a great idea at first but now that she's confronted by the task alone, she realized that she doesn't have any idea where to begin. She doesn't even know where Gray's house is located in the first place, and Mira didn't leave her with any clues. How is she going to accomplish this now?

The water mage continued walking and just quietly observed the scenery around her. It was indeed a lovely day— probably in the mid-afternoon— and the clouds are bordering the cerulean sky, obscuring the blinding rays of the sun in the form of cotton-like fluffiness. She has always admired the clouds and appreciated the beauty of them, how those soft stuff contain water in them and later on produce rain.

Juvia took them all in and halted in front of the lake, the light illuminating its waves. Ah, the waters are always truly admirable. She smiled and wished that Gray is beside her right now, enjoying the view with her.

So she carried on walking, and walking, and walking some more, until exhaustion is already forcing her to stop. It's already sunset and even the sky graced with the flaxen colors of tangerine, gold and lavender together with the view of the sun slowly hiding from sight won't take her tiredness away.

Panic slowly made its way onto her mind.

She has been walking for hours now, for goodness' sake...  
Realization slowly dawned on her and she knew she was... lost.

Oh no. Juvia wasn't really the type to easily remember places. She often get lost, especially in a crowd of people like this, and ever since joining Fairy Tail, she's not used to wandering in solitude anymore. She has depended on her friends for directions and for times like this, she doesn't know what to do...

"At this rate, Juvia will... Juvia will..." Tears began to well up in her eyes.

The bluenette sought for a temporary place to stay. Luckily, she found an isolated alley. Treachery was bordering its ambiance but she was just concentrated on being able to find somewhere to stay and deliver the letter safely to Gray.

When tears finally fell from her eyes— tears made up of anxiety, and fear, and her longing for a certain someone to be by her side— the rain, as if on cue, cascaded down the heavens at the same time. It rained gently, drizzle dancing on the atmosphere, the dark clouds looming over the whole city. She silently settled down somewhere, completely vulnerable and oblivious to the happenings around her.

Little did she know, a group of bad guys is waiting and ready to corner her, evil intentions bordering their minds.

"She's alone, look," a man wearing a leather jacket and tattered jeans with a lusty look on his eyes said, "This is our time."

"Doesn't she have anyone with her?" A guy with a shaved head and piercings asked.

"I don't think so. Let's get her!" The leader ordered. They began walking towards a weeping Juvia, drenched and dripping wet with the rainfall. She didn't notice them walking towards her.

The guy with the leather jacket gripped her arms. The bluenette was surprised as they circled around her, trying her best to break free from the stranger's grasp.

"Let Juvia go! Let go, let go!" she shouted. She tried to use magic, but she's currently out of strength— too weak to fight back, too distracted to struggle.

Their leader smirked and grabbed her face, while his underlings tried to hold her down. "Fighting back, eh? You're mine now, lady," he whispered in her ear and laughed maniacally, causing fear to stir inside the Water Mage.

With her remaining strength, Juvia attempted to attack, which turned out to be useless since they were using anti-magic stuff. "What a pitiful sight, useless mage," said the leader again.

"L... let Juvia go! She has to give something to Gray-sama!" the bluenette cried out.

"Oh, gonna give something to someone?" the bald man laughed, "As if we're letting you go. We're going to bring you somewhere and we're afraid you'll never get to give that. Ever." They all laughed, somewhat finding this situation entertaining. _What evil hearts_ , Juvia thought.

Her sight is beginning to get a bit blurry, the world spinning in her own eyes. She could barely feel their tight grip on her arms anymore, and it feels like the droplets of water is the only thing that holds her consciousness. Their laughs are reverberating in her ears, and it makes her feel scared due to her helplessness. At the same time, she's disappointed—how could she be this weak?

Juvia was ponderously losing her power...

Suddenly, there was a familiar voice that enveloped her senses and somehow brought her back to life. It feels like she regenerated all of her strength. This familiar coldness... It could only belong to one person, and one person only.

"Ice Make... Lance!"

 **Gray.**

Juvia cannot comprehend the gleefulness that instantaneously coursed through her veins. Gray... Gray... he's here, and he has came to save her.

His single attack took down almost everyone, which caused the others, except for the leader and the one who has Juvia in his grasp.

"How dare you hurt Juvia? What did you do to her?!" he shouted angrily, utter coldness emanating from his body and his hands shaking with fury. The leader slowly backed down. "I'll never... never forgive you for this!" Before he could run away, Gray threw his best attack to the leader, who ended up unconscious on the ground before the Ice Mage.

The bluenette couldn't believe what she was seeing, happiness dancing in her own eyes, her lips slowly curving into a genuine smile.

The guy who was holding her (who was the only one left) fearfully let go of her and ran away in a flash, his knees trembling.

The bluenette looked down the ground and didn't know what to say. Though the rain has already stopped, she was still soaked with all the water from it. She fidgeted her fingers, while Gray looked at her intently.

"G-Gray-sama, Juvia is... Juvia is sorry, she just wanted to give this letter to... to you..." she squeaked. To Gray's surprise, she abruptly lost consciousness and the Ice Wizard caught her before she falls to the ground.

"You made me worry," he said quietly, carrying Juvia to his home, "Don't do that again."


End file.
